Thursday, February 02, 2006

The Party of Corruption

Just two weeks after House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (R-Ill.) pledged to pass far-reaching changes to the rules of lobbying on Capitol Hill, House Republican members pushed back hard against those proposals yesterday, charging that their leaders are overreacting to a growing corruption scandal.

How can Republicans govern of lobbyists can't buy them airplane tickets and expensive meals?

It's been said that Republicans have accomplished in 10 years all the corruption it took Democrats 50 years to develop on their own. Perhaps they have a natural affinity for it?

In a blow for open government, a rule passed forbidding lobbyists from using the House gym or from coming onto the House floor.

Among those voting no were some of the House's most powerful and connected members, including Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Thomas (R-Calif.), Financial Services Committee Chairman Michael G. Oxley (R-Ohio), Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Joe Barton (R-Tex.), and former majority leader Tom DeLay (R-Tex.).

Various Republicans and Democrats said that the rule change was nice, but failed to cut to the core of corruption that has the Republican Congress in its grips.